Metal

We managed to get the chance to sit down and speak to Canadian classic rocker George Swan about his past releases as well as what is yet to come…

Q:What attracted you to the kind of music you play?

A: The power of the music was the main thing for me. I listened to lots of prog rock in the 70’s. I was getting into Uriah Heep, Pink Floyd, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Yes, Deep Purple, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, The Zombies and The Who etc. I really liked the heavy rock with the synthesizer and distorted organs going on. Then I saw guys like The Who in 1977 and became a big Who fan overnight. I also saw AC/DC around the same time with Bon Scott, and BTO-Bachman Turner Overdrive- among others. I became a real fan of power rock.

Q: What is your local music scene like? How do you think you fit in?

A: My local music scene is very limited these days. It’s too expensive here, everybody has left. The venues are closing down too, so it’s not good. Back in the day though, there were 12 or so live venues in Richmond alone where bands could play. We fit right in.

Q: How do you go about writing your songs? What is the process you go through?

A: For song writing, usually while fooling around with a keyboard of some kind I’ll come up with a chord progression that sounds cool to me… I jam on it for a while with the band, if there is one, and see what I/we come up with. For the most part my vocals are sung over the progression and I just see what I come up with for words while jamming. I record everything and you know basically play something for 45 minutes or so and see how it sounds.

Q: After so many years playing in bands, how have you found the move into being, essentially, a solo artist?

A: Now I win more arguments! *kidding*… No it’s definitely not as much fun, you really enjoy having all that input. Plus there’s a lot more spontaneity in a band where you can just go somewhere musically on a whim and see what comes out.

The boys over at The Survival Code are at it again with their brand new single ‘Along the Way’. And this time, they’ve channeled their inspirations for this new song, and we are loving it.

Gary McGuinness (Guitar/Vocals) and Tom Cook (Drums/Backing vocals) have done it again with a monuments anthem that has the most head banging, air punching vibe possible.

With a catchy chorus that uses elegant yet prominent counter melodies, a guitar lick that has managed to cement itself into my head and a rhythm section for the ages, you’d be a fool not to check this out:

This experimental, almost instrumental track is brought to you from Punks finest, with a helping from the President himself, Mr Donald Trump.

The track shows the negativity and pokes fun at Trump, all while using his speeches, and various news interviews to convey the message. Throughout, the track, the instrumentation is a dark and heavy feature, all while accompanied with occasional gang vocals and melodies.

Poking fun at trump is no surprise due to his time in office have mass effect on the whole world, and with Wartoad on board for any kind of mischief involving Trumps flaws, your sure to be in for a ride with this politically charged tune!

For nearly over 3 years now, Oceans Of Noise have been writing, recording and performing. With a packed set list, immersive stage show and respected presence, they are now ready to branch out.

Based in Turkey, where each member has had a past in music professionally, the band are making the rounds, and with brand new material recorded in New York with producer Joel Hamilton, who’s past experience with bands such as Bonobo, Highly Suspect, Tom Waits and Unsane made him an easy pairing for Oceans Of Noise.

The brand new EP ‘Oceans Of Noise’ set to be released on January 26th, the band are now ready to start playing live and their starting with London. The EP itself features great tunes such as ‘The Age Of Ghouls’ and ‘Frozen Love’, so be sure to stay tuned.

British metal titans, Anarchy Reigns, one of the biggest social media hits of 2017, are expanding beyond their legions of followers performing acts of minor insurrection worldwide to bring their music to an even larger audience. With typical disregard for convention, they are launching the campaign trail to their much anticipated debut album by GIVING AWAY the lead track, Hypocrisy.

Whether this is a stroke of genius or commercial suicide remains to be seen but you can’t argue that they’re leaving their huge fan-base shortchanged! Hypocrisy draws heavily (literally) from the British tradition of no-nonsense metal and hard rock but an emphasis on cramming as many riffs and soaring chorus’ into 3 and a bit minutes as possible, though also nodding to more European and American influences, with elements of both industrial and symphonic metal.

All of this would be all well and good but Anarchy Reign’s biggest hook is their frontman, Hitch, a force of nature and a tornado of quips, rants and pithy missives, his very clear agenda being to bring down any element of authority and power which has over-stepped the mark. Such is the case with Hypocrisy which, well, can speak for itself.

One of 2017’s most guarded secrets can now be revealed… Slam Dunk Festival will have not one, but two major headline artists! Pop-punk titans Good Charlotte will be joining the previously announced emo-rock legends Jimmy Eat World. Their co-headline performance is set to be a defining moment for the festival as it marks the Slam Dunk Festival debut of both show-stopping artists.
This ground-breaking line-up news will also see PVRIS, Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, Creeper, Thursday, Every Time I Die, Knuckle Puck, Crown The Empire and Real Friends, perform momental live sets over the May Bank Holiday weekend.

From bursting into the public consciousness with their chart-conquering pop punk through to becoming true kings of their genre via stints on MTV and six huge studio albums, few bands have had the staying power of Good Charlotte. Lead by the Madden brothers Benji and Joel, the multi-platinum stars will be at Slam Dunk to prove exactly why they’ve stayed at the top of their game over the past two decades.

Few bands have had the stratospheric rise of Massachusetts three piece PVRIS. Since their inception in 2012 they’ve gone from strength to strength and garnered a legion of fans in the process. Next year they’ll bring their signature anthemic rock, as found on this year’s acclaimed full length ‘All We Know Of Heaven, All We Need Of Hell’, to Hatfield, Leeds and Birmingham for a show that’s not to be missed. They last played the festival in 2015, after which being originally booked for the new bands stage were upgraded to the main stage due to their sudden rise in popularity. Now they return in 2018 to be one of the festival’s biggest artists.

One of the most incendiary live acts on the planet, Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes are a band born to reach staggering heights. After standing as one of the most recognisable voices in modern British rock over the past decade, Frank and his Rattlesnakes have had a mammoth rise over the past 18 months – releasing two vastly acclaimed albums, capturing festival audiences with sets of the weekends and culminating in their biggest headline show to date at London’s Brixton Academy. Witness the revolution first hand when they take the stage at Slam Dunk 2018.

Frank Carter says:
‘I cannot wait to play Slam Dunk – this has been an incredible couple of years for us, and I can’t think of a better way to start our festival season in 2018 than showing up and absolutely dominating at Slam Dunk. Get ready – we’ll see you in the Snake pit!’

A phenomenon not seen for many a-year, Creeper are the hottest name in alternative music. The release of their debut album ‘Eternity, In Your Arms’ captured the mysterious yet anthemic heights that they’ve been promising since they first emerged on the scene. Lead from the charismatic figure of frontman Will Gould, Creeper aren’t just set to break through but takeover British alternative music – and Slam Dunk 2018 is bound to be another insatiable introduction to the special world they’re forming

Creeper say:
“It is with great excitement that we can announce today that we will be returning to Slam Dunk festival in 2018. Slam Dunk is always such an important event for our scene each year, and it is an incredible privilege to be playing the main stage. See you all there!”

After seven years away, Thursday will return to the UK in 2018, with Slam Dunk Festival the only place to catch one of the most hotly-anticipated reunions in alt-rock history. Lead by the inimitable presence of frontman Geoff Rickly, Thursday reached out and touched at the hearts and minds of a generation – with records like ‘Full Collapse’ and ‘War All The Time’ still heralded as some of the most influential snapshots in time that the genre has ever seen. After time spent apart, and a feverish demand for their return – Slam Dunk 2018 is primed for a truly special moment as Thursday finally return to prove just why they sit in a class of their own. Having having played the very first Slam Dunk Festival in 2007, it is indeed a momentous welcome back!

After last playing Slam Dunk in 2016, metalcore titans Every Time I Die can’t stay away and have promised more chaos in the moshpit than ever before. The Buffalo hardcore heavyweights have gained vast recognition on this year’s UK tour run, selling out the likes of KOKO, receiving 5Ks and delivering a visceral display of their force. Their performance will be an unmissable part of Slam Dunk 2018.

Joining these incredible names will be Crown The Empire, Real Friends and Knuckle Puck, all of which are set to return to the festival after memorable performances in 2014 and 2015. All three acts are set to serve up the perfect combination of anthemic metalcore complete with razor-sharp riffs, energetic post-emo choruses and classic pop-punk with an Illinois twist, May is set to deliver the best Slam Dunk Festival to date!

After its most successful year to date in 2017, Slam Dunk Festival has been crowned the Best Metropolitan Festival at the UK Festival Awards! The news comes after the first huge names were announced for 2018, along with details of an expanded and new site for Slam Dunk South at Hatfield Park.
Over double the size of the previous location, Hatfield Park is located in the grounds of Hatfield House and situated directly opposite Hatfield train station, making it even more accessible and accommodating for festival goers wishing to revel in Slam Dunk Festival’s alternative extravaganza.
Festival Director, Ben Ray comments:
“I’m very happy to win this award of course. The event that we put on is very unique, with each of the 3 metropolitan sites offering something different….The fenced off festival site built in a city centre in Leeds, the only multistage music festival to be held on the NEC complex and I’m glad after 8 years on the university campus in Hatfield we could win the award for them the final time there.”
Slam Dunk Festival 2018 will begin in its spiritual home of Leeds, Millennium Square, before travelling to the new location of Hatfield Park, and finishing at the beloved Birmingham NEC.

TICKET INFORMATION
Tickets on sale now and are available from http://slamdunkmusic.com/
Cost £49 or £55 including the infamous afterparty. All subject to booking fees.
New for 2018 will be an instalment scheme. Customers will be able to reserve their ticket for a small cost and pay the rest in instalments up to the event.

If your sick of Liars, Upset, politics and economic stress, Hitch and the boys in Anarchy Reigns are here to let that rage out.

Hitch, Joedy (Guitarist), Wally, Andy (Drummer) are included in this monumental unity. And with no strings attached, no cons, no upset and no bad blood, Anarchy reigns set to bring you the most honest and real takes on current events, with heavy distortion to accompany.

Anarchy Reigns bring you a mix of lyrical content that will resonate with all, as well as possessing the fire of Rammstein styled guitar work, with catchy chorus’ and hooks for all music lovers.

Lead singer and writer Hitch has been doing music properly ever since he saw Genesis a few years ago. While he was watching, he was rocking the air guitar, when his wife said “why don’t you learn guitar properly”. And that’s where this whole crazy thing started.

For a 3 piece, Homerik have a massive, some what overwhelming sound. Right from the first listen their audacious sound leaves you taken a back. The first release from their album for instance, ‘Wendigo’ starts with distant screaming accompanied by a demonistic screamo voice… you think you know where this is heading right? Nope. It then jumps straight in to a tribal inspired rhythm and voices before building and eventually reaching the thundering orchestral metal you’ve been waiting for. All very confusing… but somehow utterly brilliant

Its clear that Homerik are striving for a new sound and they have achieved it with consummate ease, any one part of this 5 minute tune would be enough to make you go wow… BUT THERES 5 MINUTES OF THIS MADNESS. In much the same way ‘Curse of the Black Nile’ leads you on a confusing journey through ritualistic ancient Egyption music, before jumping between blistering Metal and Opera with no hesitation. Truly the whole album has me on the edge of my seat.

Homerik’s self titled album ‘Homerik’ will be released this halloween – https://homerik.org/about/

British Heavy Rock band ‘Dead Days’ have just dropped a new single from their latest EP titled ‘Fight‘, adding to the long list of projects from the three-piece.

Starting in May of 2016, the trio have worked hard and put so much care and effort into their love for music, whether its song-writing, playing live or recording, they have proven that they are a force that has no means of stopping. Their electrifying, yet superbly unique compositions have helped gain a reputation, as well as experience in interesting ways. Travis Marc, Drummer and Lead vocalist has been a music lover for a long time, and has had a solo outing, as well as winning a competition to record a song with Billy Talent in Canada in which he helped produce ‘Six Feet Under’which we used as a B side, so you can trust these guys when it comes to the music.

What also makes this trio unstoppable is how they pull together and each have their own divisions within the band. Travis is also a drum and guitar tech, providing a lot from the technical as well as the writing side, DC, the bassist and brother of Travis, runs the creative side in art and graphic design, which is a heavy feature within the bands arsenal, and James Mattock, who is a long time friend of Travis after they met working in a bar in London, is lead guitarist with a unique and potent style.

Be sure to check out their debut Album ‘Start Over Again’, as well as their brand new EP ‘All Your Lies’available on the 25th of September on their website.

Following on from the huge success of their latest release “Sputter The Worms” the band have returned with a track very dear to their collective hearts.

The band had this to say on the cover:“Covering music from the bands you like is always fun and exciting, but trying to do justice to it is another matter completely. We wanted a song that felt right; that was executed to the level it deserved, something we could turn into a high energy beast onstage, and most importantly a song that we all liked playing. Monster Magnet has always been that unique band as far as influence goes with Reverted. I guess it was just a matter of time before we did something like this.